Skirt-hanger.



A. SMITH,

SKIRT HANGER.

APPLIGATION PILBD 83121228, 1908.

Patented Feb. 15, 1910.

2 SHEETS-SHBET 2.

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NT FFIGE ALICE SIVIITI-I, OF HAMPSTEAD, LONDON, ENGAND, ASSIGNOE TO \VILLIAM I-IUlVIPI-IREY WHEATLEY, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

SKIRT-I-IAN GER.

T o all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALICE SMITH, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at Dunkeld Lodge, South I-Iill Park Gardens7 Hampstead, London, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Skirt-Hangers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention for improvements in skirt hangers relates to those hanging appliances which are formed of a curved bar adapted to be inserted in the skirt band and provided near the middle with a suspending hook. VVith such hangers as hitherto constructed the end of the bar sometimes presses against the material of the skirt at a point below the band, whereby the skirt is liable to be stretched at this point and more or less disfigured.

Now this invention has for its object to prevent the displaceinent of the skirt band after it has been arranged on the hanger, and consists in providing one end of the hanger bar with a clip arranged to grip the skirt band and hold it in position.

Referring to the accompanying sheets of illustrative drawings, Figures 1, 2 and 8 represent in side elevation, end elevation and plan respectively one arra-ngement of a skirt hanger constructed according to this invention, part of the hanger bar being broken away. Fig. et shows to a reduced scale an elevation of a hanger with a skirt attached thereto. Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are similar views to Figs. 1 to 3 showing a modified arrangement of hanger, Figs. 8 and 9 are side elevation and plan respectively of another modified form of construction. Figs. 10 and 11 are side elevations illustrating two further modified forms of hangers and Figs. 10ZL and 101D are detail views of further modifioations.

A hanger bar a is cut away at the front end as show-n, to form a fiXed jaw Z) while the end c of a two armed lever (Z e projects over it and coperates with it to grip the skirt band. vThe gripping lever (Z e is made of a single length of Wire comprising an extension f, through which it is operated by the thumb or finger of the operator; two arms (Z e; the end c for gripping the band of the suspended skirt; and the transverse journal part g which passes through an opening in the bar a and is secured in position by a filling plug h provided with a Specfication of Letters Patent.

Application filed September 26, 1908.

Patented Feb. 15, 1910.

Serial No. 454,921.

groove z'4 for receiving the journal part g of the lever and which permits of the adjustment of the position of the end c by turning the plug h into any desired position and then securing it by means of a pin The lever is forced into, and maintained in, its normal or gripping position by a spring Z secured to the bar as shown.

In order to effect an automatic grip of the jaws I so arrange the position of the pivot or journal g and angle of the jaw b that the angle between the jaw b and the line joining the aXis of the pivot g and the extremity of jaw c, when closed, shall eX- ceed the complement of the angle of repose of the surfaces in sliding contact. It will thus be readily understood that as a result of the downward pull caused by the weight of the garment the frict-ion between the material gripped and the gripping jaws Z) and c causes the jaws to press together with sufficient force to efiectually jam the material between them. It is however unnecessary to adhere strictly to the angle indicated provided the spring 1 is made of suflicient strengt-h to provide the necessary external reinforcing pressure on the gripping lever.

In using the hanger the end o' is first passed through the placket hole of the skirt; the gripping end a is then raised from the surface of the aw b by depressing the end .of the gripping lever; the band of the skirt is then placed between them the release of the said lever permitting the said band to be firmly gripped in the jaws as will be readily understood. A suitable hook is provided by which the hanger bar a is suspended from any convenient support in the usual manner.

The modified arrangement of hanger shown in Figs. 5, 6, and 7 comprises a lever cl e suitably bent and pivoted to the bar a by the pin g, the gripping end c being pressed on to the gripping surface b of the bar by means of a spring Z secured to the bar as shown.

In the form of hanger illustrated in Figs. 8 and 9 the lever e is pivoted on a pin g as before, but the gripping end c is pressed on to the gripping surface b by a spring Z coiled around a pin p secured in the arms (Z of the lever. An opening g is bored in the bar a for the reception of the coiled part of the spring and shallow recesses q' are made in opposite sides of the bar to enable the oppositely extending ends Z' of the spring to lie flush with the sides of the bar in which they are fixed, and the arms cl of the lever to lie close against the said sides as shown.

Referring to Fig. 10 a plate m secured to the bar a is bent to form a gripping projection b with which the inclined gripping end o of the lever d e is made to engage, by means of the spring Z the material to be gripped being placed between them as hereinbefore described. Obvionsly the gripping end c may be inclined as shown in Fig. 10a to engage with the outer side of the projection Z). Or it may be formed in the shape of an inverted V as shown in Fig. 10b so as to press on both sides of the projection .7) suitably shaped to fit.

Fig. 11 shows a further modified arrangement in which the gripping device is mounted on the bar a and comprises a flanged base m for secnring it to the bar a, a bent spring arm n terminating in a gripping extension c formed to engage with a hooked gripping extension b and a lever (Z c pivoted by the pin g to the bar a and whose end 0 engages with the arm w. so that on Operating the said lever the spring arm n is drawn inward causing the gripping extensions c and Z) to approach each other and so firmly grip the material placed between them.

What claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A skirt hanger comprising a hanger bar having one end formed with a gripping surface in combination with a gripper lever provided with a gripping extension and so piyoted with respect to the beforementioned grippl'ng surface that a pull on the grlpped material causes the grlppmg surfaces to automatically jam the material between them substantially as described.

2. In skirt hangers a gripping device comprising a fixed jaw secured to or integral with the hanger bar, a lever' pivoted to or journaled in the hanger bar and provided with a gripping end to coperate with the fixed jaw, a spring secured to the hanger bar and connected to the gripper lever so as to press the gripping jaws into engagement and an adjustable pivot or bearing plug for securing and maintaining the pivot or jou1' nal of the gripping lever in position substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

ALICE SMITH.

VVitnesses H. D. JAMESON, F. L. RAND. 

